Group Dynamics Essay

3752 Words16 Pages
GROUP DYNAMICS and LEADERSHIP This educational CAPPE module is part v in section II: Practices in Spiritual Care & Counselling Written by Peter L. VanKatwyk Introduction The genius of the clinical pastoral education (CPE) movement has been to practice experiential learning (Kolb, 1984) in a relational context. Rather than a psychoanalytic focus on intra-personal dynamics (whether the patient/client or student) CPE has followed a contextual approach centered in the inter-personal dynamics of being with others. The helping relationship became the main focus for spiritual care and the interpersonal relationship (IPR) group the critical stage for personal and professional formation (Hemenway, 1996). The group format in clinical education clarifies the crucial difference between contents and process. In caring conversations, process seeks to track the other person’s thoughts and feelings while contents concerns can easily distract and distance from the other. Being able to tune into and stay with the process may well constitute the main task in clinical education. While in an academic context contents dominates, clinical education is largely process oriented. Programs in clinical education in spiritual care and counselling are designed to initiate students in a dimension of knowledge that is contextual – patterns in process. Reflection: o How do you experience the difference between contents and process? o How do you see yourself: primarily a contents or a process person? o Where do you see your comfort level or balance between the two? This module will connect group process with group development and group leadership. I. Group Process Process is best experienced by active group participation. A group is more than the sum of its individual participants. It is the interaction between group members who through interdependent roles produce dance patterns or, as in a play,
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